Hero Recovered
by Blue Boxes and Vampire Fangs
Summary: The battle of New York happened and then what? Scarlett's family left and she was left alone. Depending more and more on alcohol Scarlett is faced with the discovery that she needs help. Finding herself and her strength with the help go her loved ones. Scarlett builds herself back up from rock bottom, and shows her teeth when her family is in trouble. 3rd in the Hero Chronicles.
1. Prolouge

**Hero Recovered**

 **Prologue**

* * *

I sat in the plastic chair, my elbows on my knees as I bent over; my left leg was bouncing.

"Scarlett?" I heard a voice call. "It's your turn."

I sighed as I slapped my hands on my knees and stood up. I walked up to the podium and placed my hands on the edges as I looked out at the group. It was a small group tonight, which was good; seeing how this was the third time I'd tried talking to them.

"My name is Scarlett," I began before stopping and licking my bottom lip, "and I'm an alcoholic. Ands it's been three weeks since the last time I had a drink."

I closed my eyes as I admitted it out loud. I had tried to take care of this by myself, but two weeks after New York Happy pulled my drunk ass from the beach. I had officially reached rocked bottom, so I did the thing that was the hardest thing I've ever done. Admitting that I didn't know how to get better, how to move on, that I needed help.

"I drink to make me numb, to everything," I confessed opening my eyes and staring at the group. "But I realized that I can't go through life numb, I have to feel things, even the bad stuff." I stopped not knowing what else to say so I took a step back and made my way to my chair, my eyes on the floor trying to make myself invisible.

"That's a very good start Scarlett" the leader of our AA group said. I nodded my head as I glanced at the clock, it was seven, it had been almost four days since I've checked my blood to see if the cancer had come back. I squeezed my hands so hard I left nail marks in my palms. _Calm down,_ I told myself, _the cancer is gone_.

 _"Is it?"_ I heard Loki's voice in my ear.

I jumped and flinched causing the plastic chair to screech against the floor, in turn causing the group to turn around and look at me. "Sorry," I whispered as I stood and rushed out of the room. I made it down the hallway before breaking into the small lobby of the building and resting my head against the wall. An urge to start drinking ran through me. Ever since he left, I couldn't help but wait for the other shoe to drop, for Loki to come back and do whatever he wanted with me.

"Hey," Steve's voice broke me out of my thoughts. "The meeting get out early?"

I opened my eyes and smiled at Steve sitting in the sunken couch in the lobby. "No, I… I needed to leave"

"Did you talk tonight?" he asked as he stood up and made his way over to me.

"I did," I said. "Well, like three sentences, but still."

A smile graced Steve's face as the two of us walked out of the building. "That's progress," he said.

I nodded my head, "It is," I said.

"Food?" Steve asked as I slipped behind him on the motorcycle.

"I could go for a hot dog right about now," I admitted.

"Coneys it is," Steve said as he took off to find a hot dog stand.

We ordered our dogs and walked over to a bench and started to eat.

"Are you still leaving tomorrow?" Steve asked.

I nodded my head and then swallowed my food. "Yeah, tomorrow morning to Malibu."

"Do you think it's smart to go back?" Steve asked.

"No," I admitted, "but I miss my family, 'sides it will only be for a visit."

We finished our food and Steve drove me back to my tiny apartment in silence.

I hopped off and looked at Steve. "Thanks for the ride," I whispered.

"Be safe," Steve said as he gripped my arm. "Worry about yourself."

I nodded and went into my apartment.

* * *

While it was true that I was leaving, I lied to Steve about going to Malibu. I arrived at Clint's farmhouse early in the afternoon.

Clint opened the door for me and he looked just about as shitty as I did.

"Hey Tweety," he said as he gave me a hug. I buried my face into his chest as I blinked the tears out of my eyes. "Hey, hey," Clint said. "What's wrong?"

I wiped my eyes with the palm of my heel. "I'm trending," I quaked as I shoved my phone into Clint's hands.

Clint eyed me as I walked into the house and sat at the table with my bags.

"Shit," I heard Clint whisper as he walked in and sat across from me. The phone sat between us with the giant headline that read ' ** _Scarlett Stark goes to AA'_**.

"There was a fucking a reporter at the meeting," I snapped. "And they have my entire session on fucking tape because my goddamn AA leader took a pay out."

"Do I need to punch him?" Clint asked.

I sighed. "No, you need to keep the alcohol away from me," I said. "And let me crash in your guest room because I've officially become a hermit from society."

Clint chuckled and motioned to the room. "It's is all yours," he said. "Laura and the kids are at the grocery store."

"Thanks Big Bird," I said as I grabbed my bags. "I will babysit the kids anytime you need."

* * *

I shot up in bed gasping as I swallowed my screams. I tried really hard not to wake everyone up as slipped on a pair of socks and made my way to the porch. These past couple of days out here had been peaceful. Clint was struggling with his own demons so I tried to keep my own issues at bay.

I sat on the porch chair and stared out at the farm. I missed the beach, especially the view from my family home, but those halls were just filled with too many memories that I want nothing more to forget.

"Out here again?" I heard Clint's voice, still laced with sleep.

"Yeah, I couldn't fall back asleep," I said as I brought my feet up on the chair.

"Nightmares?" Clint asked.

I nodded my head, avoiding looking at him. "I stopped drinking, but it didn't make the nightmares stop."

"What made you stop?" Clint asked. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that you did, but why?"

"We sent Thor and Lo- him back, and at first it was fine; we were together as a family and working on cleaning New York back up and then there was the whole government issue about the Avengers that I took care of, but once it was all done there was nothing for me to do. Which means that there was more time for me to think about everything that's happened. Dad moved us back to Malibu to get away." I paused, going deeper into my thoughts. "And thinking leads to feeling and I can't handle all of those feelings, so I drink. And drink, and then I would go down to the beach and just stare out at the water with my feet in the sand. But one night I was too close to the shore line and I kept drinking and passed out. Happy found me before I drowned but that was my wake up call."

Clint put his hand on my knee but didn't look over at me with the pity I knew was in his eyes.

"So I went to D.C., started looking for something, anything, that would keep me busy and away from my thoughts. Steve had contacted me and told me he moved down there and we started hanging out," I finished. "Found an AA group and started going, built up the courage to actually talk and found myself as the most talked about topic for the week."

Clint sighed. "Tweety," he said.

"Please don't," I whispered. "I'm here to escape and get better."

"I don't see your dad being okay with you just leaving like that," Clint said.

"Oh, he wasn't," I said laughing. "But he is running into his own problems post New York. 'Sides," I said as I slipped off my ring and handed it to him. Clint looked at it and saw the inside of the ring. It had a small screen and there was a heartbeat and pulse readings displayed. "It's my dad's," I said as I slipped the ring back on. "He's got my readings, too. It's our own freaky way of making sure that we aren't dead."

Clint chuckled. "Whatever gets the two of you out of the door," he said as he slapped his thighs, and stood up. "Come on," he said holding his hand out for me.

I raised an eyebrow at his outstretched hand. "I can't go back to sleep," I said.

"No, we are both awake, time to start the day." Clint replied as he grabbed my hand and hauled me off of the chair. "Let's go for a run."

"What?" I cried as Clint walked into the house.

* * *

 **One Month Later**

I crawled up the steps into the Barton's house and managed to make it to their dining table before sprawling across the bench. I had been running every morning for the past month. Every morning when I wake up with fear clenched in my throat I would stumble out of bed and throw on some tennis shoes. There was a running track and I would start to run until I physically couldn't anymore.

I closed my eyes and threw my arm over them as I took slow steady breaths to regain my breath.

 _I was strapped to a chair, my mouth covered as pain raced through me. I screamed and cried and I looked over and saw Obi standing there. Obi, my father's oldest friend. My grandfather's friend. He was the one behind everything. He squatted in front of me and grinned as he pressed the button once again, my body thrashed and I screamed out in pain again._

I shot up with a scream and looked around, I had fallen back asleep in the kitchen. I looked around and saw Laura in the kitchen, she was making breakfast but I could tell she was trying to ignore my screams. "Sorry," I whispered as I moved off of the bench.

"Don't be," she said as she slid me a plate of waffles. "Sit and eat. It's not good to run and then not put food into your body."

I nodded and sat back down and slowly picked at the waffles.

* * *

 **Three months later**

I smiled down at Cooper who was standing next to me bouncing on his toes. I couldn't blame him I was just as excited as he was, because between the two of us we had finally wore Clint down.

He was going to teach us how to shoot his bow.

Which was a complete failure, I may be a genius but that doesn't give me the ability to pick up anything with a snap of my fingers, unfortunately.

Even Cooper did better than I did, which Clint took a big kick out of. "It's in the genes kid," he said as we headed back to the house.

* * *

It was time, time for me to go home. Time for me to go back to reality and face people. I hadn't had a nightmare in a few weeks and was feeling better than I had in years. It was tough but I think being around Clint, Laura, and the kids was a major turning point.

Clint and the family had gone on their vacation, Natasha met up with them there and I received a dozen pictures of their adventure.

I packed up my stuff and left Clint and Laura a thank you note, though that could never be enough for what they did for me, and left the solitude of the farm; ready to face the world again.


	2. Chapter 1

**Here ya go guys!**

 **As Always I don't own Marvel.**

 **Read,** **Review, and Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter One**

* * *

I smiled as I pulled into the loop of my home. I had decided that before coming back to the real world I would make a side stop to the real world that only a certain Stark can achieve.

"Dad?" I called out as I dropped my bags by the front door. "Mom?"

I slipped my shoes off as I wandered into the living room. It was empty but that wasn't something that I was used to. Between the workshop and the small office my dad set up for my mom the living room was normally empty.

"J?" I call out.

"They are at the office, Scarlett," I heard his voice call out.

I sigh and slip my shoes back on and pick up my bag. "Then that's where I'm going," I call.

* * *

I love the building that Stark Industries sits in, every time I see it when I walked in, I can't help but look up and see how tall it is; the windows that seemed to stretch into the sky. This was the Stark Castle, my dad used to say when I asked about why it was so tall. And this is mine.

I snuck into the corner office that had been mine since I was sixteen and settled down. Mom had been taking care of the things that are time sensitive, but a stack of paperwork I needed to take care of sat in the middle of my desk. I picked up the first sheet and got started."When I heard that you were actually doing work I thought I needed to come see this for myself," I heard my mom.

I smiled and set down the file I had in my hands. It had been a few hours since I had sat down and while I had made a dent in the stack I still had a least another day's worth.

"Oh, well I figured I should show up every once in a while," I said sliding out from the desk and walked over to my mom and gave her a huge hug.

"Hi Mom," I said as I breathed in her scent.

"Hi, sweetie," she said as we broke from the hug.

"What's up?" I asked as we started to walk to her office.

"Well, your father and I were just finishing some work when we heard the rumor, figured I would go check it out." She explained as we stepped into the office and closed the door.

I felt a smile reach my lips as I saw my dad sitting in one of the oversized comfy chairs he all but made Pepper get for her office. "Uh huh," I said unconvinced.

"Really she went to go see if the rumors are true," my dad backed her up as he stood up and enveloped me in a hug. "Just not the rumors of you being here, more of the-you-went-to-rehab kind."

I huffed as I returned the hug.

"Tony," Pepper scolded while I slipped out of the hug and sat on the edge of the table.

"What?" my dad asked looking at Pepper. "You were."

I noticed the set up of food that had been placed on the table.

"No one noticed me come in," I said seeing that there were three meals on the table. "So why did you order three meals?"

"Jarvis," he replied, "sent a message that you had arrived from wherever you were."

I sighed and flopped onto the couch. "So you thought you could bribe me with food to tell you everything?"

My dad smirked as he flopped on the chair across from me and lifted the lid on my meal. It was a bacon cheeseburger with curly fries; my absolute favorite greasy food. "That is exactly what I plan to do," he said.

I rolled my eyes because I was planning on telling them what had happened anyway. With a few changes here and there, I don't think that dad could handle me hanging out with Steve, and the Barton flock was still a secret. These were my parents and they were actually concerned for me but I wasn't going to snatch up the opportunity for food though.

I had finished and it seemed like my parents took my answers and explanations with stride. My mom had remained in her office while dad and I walked down to the parking lot.

"I'm proud of you," he said as he threw his arm over my shoulder. "Especially since you stopped drinking."

I smiled and looked over at him. I couldn't believe that we were here. A year and a half ago I was begging for any attention or acknowledgement from him and now he was actively claiming me with every call of daughter, bribing me to talk about what's going on with me. I had been through hell and back. I found myself drowning and somehow this affection, this baseline, was my anchor that kept me afloat.

"I tried," I whispered, "so hard but when everything stopped." I trailed off.

Dad squeezed my shoulder and I laid my head on his.

* * *

We went back home and I wandered back to my room. I couldn't help but think that this wasn't mine. This belonged to someone else. Granted that someone else was _me_ , but I wasn't the girl who decorated this room. I had changed, I had grown, I had died. I glanced at the few pictures that I had hanging up in the frame of my mirror, my precious memories for all to see. I pulled them off and slipped them into my bag. Everything else I wasn't interested in. My journals that held my thoughts and feelings from years past had no hold on me. I had gotten what I wanted. All of my painting supplies and past drawings had made its way to New York already. I grabbed my bags and closed the door before heading to one of the guest rooms.

I was jet lagged from the trip and was finally starting to be able to fall asleep without having nightmares every night. I jumped on the bed and giggled to myself as I curled up underneath the covers and closed my eyes, ready for a dreamless sleep.

* * *

I was walking down the steps when my phone rang. "Hello?" I answered.

"You don't have a badge set up," I heard a voice reply.

I didn't look at the ID before I had answered so I pulled it back and looked. "Happy?" I asked.

"Of course it's me," he said. "You came into the building and you didn't get a badge."

"I think I'm missing something," I said as I turned and walked back up the steps to the living room, the sound of my dad's Christmas music distorting the conversation.

"I'm the new head of security," Happy said.

"Really?" I asked. "Congratulations!"

"Thanks, but I need you to come back down so we can get your badge set up," he replied.

"I need identification?" I asked.

"Yes."

"More than my last name on the side of the building?"

There was silence as Happy tried to figure out what to say next. "Can you please just come up here," he said.

"Okay fine," I replied picking up the keys for the car that my dad had driven us home in. "I'm on my way."

* * *

I sped over there, wondering why Happy could want me back at the building. I left the car sitting at the front of the building, a perk I always took advantage of, and slipped into the lobby. I noticed Happy standing next to the guest desk and I veered towards him. "You summoned me," I said with a slight edge to my tone.

Happy gave me a stern look. To anyone looking inside at us, they might think that I was just being my spoiled self, but this was just me teasing Happy, and Happy playing back. He smiled and slid me a stack of papers. I looked at them and started to thumb through them. "You need to fill these out, have Pepper sign them and return them," he said.

"So I can have a name badge for my own building," I deadpanned.

"Yes," Happy said. "And I would start with Pepper's signature before she leaves for the day."

I raised an eyebrow at him with a soft sigh. "Can you tell me where Mom is now?" I asked.

"She's in her office," he replied. "I'll take you."

Something was going on, I could feel it in my gut as I started to follow Happy to Mom's office. "Is something going on?" I asked.

"Nothing, nothing," Happy said. "Just following protocol."

I followed his lead throughout the building as I flipped through the papers. It seemed like a normal personal file. I flipped to halfway through the stack. My eyebrows scrunched as I read over the questions. "Wait a second, 'What is my ideal date'? Happy, these are questions from a dating profile."

"All things that the company needs to know," Happy said as he threw the door open to Pepper's office and shoved me in.

"Happy!" I exclaimed as I stumbled, almost losing my grip on the papers.

I looked up and saw Pepper sitting at one of her chairs with someone else. They were having a meeting.

"Oh my God," I squeaked. "I'm so sorry I'll leave."

I turned around and had my hand on the handle when I heard Pepper laugh.

"It's fine Scarlett, I'd like you to meet Aldrich Killian," she said.

I set the stack of ridiculous papers on the tiny table next to the door and walked over to where this meeting was taking place.

"Aldrich Killian," a suave blond man said with a smirk as he held his hand out.

"Scarlett," I said, leaving my last name out, it didn't need to be retracted his hand from mine and started to perk up a little as he began his presentation.

"Now that I have two exemplary minds to show off too," he said as he stood to look at us. "After years dodging the President's ban on "immoral" biotech research, my think tank now has a little something in the pipeline. It's an idea we like to call EXTREMIS."

I paused at hearing this, dodged was a word I was trained to be on the lookout for. This, whatever this EXTREMIS was, was illegal and morally wrong.

Killian walked over to the lights. "I'm gonna turn your lights down," he said. "Regard the human brain."

The galaxy was projected right above the table. I fell in awe at the beauty of it. I knew this was a ploy to try and soften us women but it was gorgeous. I felt my hand twitch in earnest to try to capture this image, but I knew I was never going to get those colors just right, some beauty just couldn't be captured and that in itself is what made it beautiful.

"Oh, hold on, that's the universe. My bad," Killian said as he clicked a button on his remote and my view was replaced with a hologram of a brain.

"That's amazing," Pepper breathed out.

"Thanks, it's mine," Killian said as he held out his hand for Pepper. She took it and the two of them stood on the table. Killian then turned and held out his hand for me to join.

"No thanks," I declined. My view was gone and now I had to focus on the highly illegal (probably) proposition that Killian was about to explain.

"Wait this is your brain?" Pepper asked.

Killian chuckled. "It's a live feed, here I can prove it. Pinch me."

"What?" Pepper asked.

"I can take it, pinch me," Killian urged.

I rolled my eyes and stood up in a huff and pinched his arm.

"What's that?" Pepper asked as a piece of the brain lit up.

"It's the primary somatosensory cortex," Killian said.

"It's the brain's pain center," I explained to Pepper who was still a little lost. While I had never seen someone who could manage a business and my dad as well as she could, this science was a little out of her depth.

Killian glanced at me, while I hadn't sat back down I was still standing apart from them. "This is what I want to show you," he said as he pressed another button on his remote and the brain zoomed in on a specific center of the brain. "Now EXTREMIS harnesses our bioelectrical potential and it goes here. This is essentially an empty slot and what this tells us is that our mind, our entire DNA, in fact, is destined to be upgraded," he explained, taking turns between glancing at Pepper and at me.

"Upgraded?" I asked. "How do you plan to upgrade everyone when everyone's DNA is coded differently?"

Killian shot me what looked like a pained smile as my phone vibrated in my pocket. The lights came back on and Killian hopped off of the table, turned to help Pepper off and looked at me. "Can't you just imagine if you could hack into the hard drive of any living organism and recode its DNA? We could save lives, cure cancer," he tried to entice me as he gripped my hands. I felt anger rise within me. It was common knowledge for the outside world that I had had cancer. What was not common knowledge was how I was cured. To the Avengers and my family, they knew about Loki. To the rest of the world I was in remission and that is what led me to my rehab stint.

I snapped my hands out of his and walked over to where Pepper stood. "I would love to help come up with a cure for cancer, unfortunately I know how hard that is going to be with how cancer affects everyone's cells because everyone's DNA is wired differently. Which brings me back to my unanswered question," I said.

"It does sound amazing," Pepper said. "But I agree with my daughter, this unfortunately, to my ears, also sounds highly weaponisable. As in, enhanced soldiers, private armies, and Tony is.." she continued.

"Tony, TON-" Killian interrupted her.

That was the final nail in his cement coffin that was my opinion of him. I felt a scowl forming on my face; I did not like this man. I didn't like how he treated the two of us, plus this pitch screamed like a bad decision.

"You know, I invited Tony to join AIM 13 years ago. He turned me down. But now there's a new genius on the throne, and the upcoming heir, who doesn't have to answer to Tony anymore and who has slightly less of an ego," Killian continued his pursuit.

"It's going to be a no," Pepper said her voice firm.

"A double no," I seconded.

Killian looked at the two of us and deflated.

* * *

The two of us walked him out of the building and I stood next to the door, waiting for this jackass to leave so I could talk to Pepper.

"I can't say that I'm not disappointed," Killian said. "But then, as my father used to say, 'Failure is the fog through which we glimpse triumph'."

"That's very deep," Pepper said.

I scoffed. "I have no idea what that means," I said.

Killian shot me a glance. "Me either, he was kind of an idiot, my old man," he said with a wink.

I huffed and walked back inside to see Happy staring at us through the window. I took residence next to him and punched him in the shoulder.

"Ow," he said clutching his arm. "What was that for?"

"The next time you want me to play cockblock for my mom; just tell me," I growled before I turned and started to head for the door.

* * *

My phone vibrated again and I glanced down at the message and felt a smile at seeing that Steve had found my Christmas gift. He had finally decided to start a list of things people kept telling him to check out and he couldn't figure out how to make a list on his phone so I sent a crazy amount of time trying to find a tiny journal that would fit in his pocket and not fall apart.

I replied with a Merry Christmas and slipped into the car, ready to go home.


	3. Chapter 2

Hey Guys! here is chapter 2! up and ready to go, sorry it took a little bit longer than normal.

As always, Read, Review, and Enjoy!

(8/6 Update) **Hey guys, it's been brought to my attention that some pieces got jumbled up in the upload, I've gone back and fixed it and now this chapter is how it should be, a huge thank you for bringing it to me!)**

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

* * *

I spent some more time in my office. I was on my way to the car when Happy informed me that tonight was my parent's date night. While I was happy that they were together and everything was working, I was not about to be witness to their date night. Ew.

So I made camp back into my office and started to continue making my way through the paperwork I had left.

* * *

I closed the file I was working on and stretched, I spun around and saw that the sun had already set and it was getting really dark outside. I rubbed my eyes and stood up. I stretched my legs by walking around the room when my phone started a familiar tune.

"Miss me already?" I teased the person on the other line as I flopped back in my chair.

"Actually…. Yes" he replied honestly.

Blood rushed to my cheeks at his answer "me too" I confessed.

"How are you doing?"

I thought about it for a moment, normally I would give me standard answer, the one everyone expected out of me, but with Steve, I never felt like that. I never felt the pressure to be consistently on and ready for whatever could happen. It was a nice change of pace. With my dad, it was this constant edge of needing to be ready for whatever he was going to say or do. With Peter our meetings were always almost over before they began, our friendship was strong, but distance. But with Steve, I could be relaxed and say what I wanted. "Better" I answer, "still have moments where I want to drown my sorrows but they are happening less and less."

"I'm glad" he responded, I could hear the relief in his tone.

"I think I'm going to head back pretty soon though," I admitted.

"Really?" Steve chuckled, "all I hear is how much you miss it and now you want to come back."

"I did miss it," I defended with a smile on my face, "I missed my family, and I will always miss the beach when I'm not there, but I can't help this feeling of being a stranger in my home"

"I get that," Steve said, "you are an entirely different person then you were when you left."

"Ya" I said sadly "got it in one" my heart tugging a little. I placed my hand on my chest to rub away the pain. Steve was taking what happened to him like a champ but I couldn't help how bad I felt for him, how much I wished that he didn't have to sacrifice something so big like that. Because I wasn't sure if I could ever make that decision.

"I knocked out a few of the things that you put on my list" Steve said, diverting the attention away from our sad topic.

"Oh really?" I asked excitedly, perking up in my seat. "What did you do?"

"I had falafel and watched The Lion King" he sated proudly.

"What did you think?" I questioned back excitedly; we had had several conversations on the perk of Disney movies and how you were never to old for them.

A knock on the door however, drew my attention away from Steve's reaction to see my dad standing in the doorway. Years of spending time with anyone can fine-tune you to their inner workings, how they show or hide their thoughts and emotions. And every sensor I had tuned to him was blaring. "Hey champ," I breathed out, stopping his analysis of the movie. "I've got to, I'll call you back"

"Is everything ok?" his asked, immediately picking up on my distress.

"I don't know I'll call you later" I said hanging up on him and looking at my dad.

Dad was looking at his feet but as soon as my conversation was over he cleared his throat and my eye contact with me, "it's Happy," he said.

* * *

 _"True story about fortune cookies. They look Chinese. They sound Chinese. But they're actually an American invention. Which is why they're hollow, full of lies and leave a bad taste in the mouth"_

* * *

I hated waking up in hospitals, had had enough of them for my entire life, but the opposite. Sitting in one these uncomfortable chairs watching someone I loved, someone who was apart of almost every childhood memory I had, was worse. I could hear the press outside, waiting with their cameras and crew hoping that one of us would break down and cause a scene in our grief.

"How did this happen?" I asked, my attention on Happy, his limp hand encased in mine, "how does someone sneak a bomb into a tourist attraction without raising any alarms?"

"How much do you know about the Mandarin?" my dad asked, he had taken his solace in a chair slightly in the corner.

"What the public knows," I answered, feeling shame at the fact that this Mandarin, this terrorist was running around blowing things up and I was hiding in a farmhouse feeling sorry for myself.

"Does SHIELD have any more information?" he pressed.

I blinked back tears, "I don't know," I confessed in a whisper, squeezing Happy's hand.

Frustration radiated from my father in his movements as I tried my hardest to ignore it.

* * *

A nurse came in and started to check Happy's vitals, I leaned back to give her some space, but I wouldn't let go of his hand. We had turned on Downton Abby, which was his favorite show. A carrot for Happy to come out of his coma. The nurse picked up the remote and went to turn it off.

"Do you mind leaving that on?" my dad asked.

The nurse looked startled at seeing the two of us sitting here, and I don't blame her. We were on the side making no noise with the lights off. It was easy to assume we had gone. "Sure" she agreed setting the remote back where it was.

We stared at her as she finished and left us alone. A few more moments of silence and my dad stood up. I remained sitting, still staring at the man who taught me how to throw a punch at guys who were giving me a hard time. Dad had left and soon it was just the two of us.

"We're gonna get him" I whispered to Happy "I promise, no one can hurt one of us without getting caught"

Happy didn't respond.

I patted the top of his hand and leaned back in my seat. I needed to get in contact with SHIELD and see what they had on this guy. I started to run through people I could call.

My go to was Phil but he was dead.

Clint was vacation and I think so was Natasha

Fury wouldn't give me anything concrete

And Steve hadn't accepted Fury's offer to work for them yet

I could re-infiltrate SHIELD using Agent Ford but I wanted to call upon those alliances and friends we had made in New York, I wanted to be upfront and honest with these people, not sneak in and steal what I needed to know. I scrolled through my eclectic collection of names and codename when I finally came across one that might help. I pressed the call button and pressed the phone to my ear, "please, please, answer" I prayed as it started ringing.

"This is Hill?" she stated in a question.

"Agent Hill, this is Scarlett Stark" I rushed out.

"Miss Stark?" she asked, "How did you get this number?"

"It's Scarlett and that is not the point, can you tell me what you guys have on the Mandarin?" I begged.

"I can't give you that information," she said.

"Please" I begged, "this bastard hurt someone in my family"

"And how are you going to help this situation?" she asked.

"The same way I single handedly found my father" I stated my determination growing in my tone, "when I want someone found, I find them."

I heard a sigh before a moment of silence. "He takes over every channel in America" she said "even premium ones you have to pay for. We can't figure out how he hijacks everyone and the same time. The signal runs through not just several but hundreds of servers that change with every broadcast and we can't track his location. But he has to have help from someone based in America. We're looking at different groups with religious or philosophical view that skew towards the same as him, but so far nothing."

I processed this information and all of my feelings started to get pushed down. Here was a problem that I could work on. I could focus all of my attention on it.

"Thank you" I said soberly.

"You owe me one" she replied before hanging up.

* * *

"I'm gonna get him" I promised Happy again before standing up and making my way out of the hospital room. The roar of the reporters had simmered down which lead me to believe that my dad had left. "Excuse me" I softly got the attention of the nurse who was standing by Happy's door.

"Yes" she said.

"Uncle Happy is a stickler for rules" I explained, "Can you make sure everyone is wearing their badges,"

She gave me a placating smile. "Sure honey."

I walked out of the hospital and hailed a taxi to take me home.

* * *

I walked into the front door of my house and I heard arguing. I sighed as I went to see what was going on.

"Dad?" I asked seeing mom with a bag and some women in the front room "what's going on?"

"Your father" Pepper seethed. "Announced our address on TV and told the Mandarin to come and get him."

"I'm sorry?" I asked looking at my dad "are you dying again? Because that's the only way I can imagine you doing something so stupid"

"I'm going to end this," my dad said "my way"

"Tony" the women said, "We need to get out of here"

"Couldn't agree with you more random stranger" I said glancing at the women.

The women glanced at me and opened her mouth to introduce when pepperinterrupted.

"Scar, you've got a surprise in the kitchen, make it quick and pack a bag, we're leaving." She snapped.

I raised an eyebrow, but she used her scary voice that she only uses on dad when he's done something wrong. I turned to head to the kitchen when something stops me in my tracks.

"Is that a bunny?" I asked.

Dad huffed, "yes, it's a big bunny, relax about it!" he yelled. "and deal with what's in the kitchen."

I jumped at his yelling and scampered into the kitchen.

* * *

"Geesh" I huffed to myself.

"That's one big argument you've got going on in there," a voice agreed with me.

I jumped and spun around, my arms up in some weird fighting position. I relaxed however when I realized who it was.

"You came?" I whispered.

"Of course I did" Steve said as he stepped forward to wrap me in a hug.

I returned the hug eagerly and pressed my face into his shoulder to keep the tears away.

We broke apart and I couldn't keep the smile off of my face. "What are you doing here?" I asked, needing to know what he was thinking before I jumped to conclusions.

"You told me about Happy and I thought I would be here for you," he explained, "I had just landed when your father's announcement was broadcasted. I showed up here and they threw me in the kitchen."

I cringed, "I'm sorry for how dad treated you, I'm sure it wasn't pleasant" I apologized.

"Nah" Steve said rubbing the back of his neck, it's nothing he wasn't too bad" he deflected.

I raised an eyebrow at him "you should get better at lying," I said.

Steve laughed and the two of us turned to go back into the living room when I was suddenly shoved.

"Look out" I heard someone yell.

And the kitchen exploded.


	4. Chapter 3

**Hey Guys! Sorry this update took so long, this is my final year of school and it hurt me a little harder than expected, throw in some family health scares and this unfortunately got pushed to the side. But, I'm back now! and the next chapter is already in the world,**

 **So Read, Review and Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

* * *

I felt something being wrapped around my hands and it moved up my body. I closed my eyes bracing for impact. My body hit the ground and while it rattled me it, it didn't hurt.

"Miss Stark," I heard a familiar voice.

I opened my eyes and saw a computer screen in front of me.

"What?" I asked.

"Your father created a suit for you, but might I suggest helping Captain Rogers at the moment." Jarvis said.

I turned my head, trying to get used to being encased in a suit. "Steve!" I called as I scrambled up to my feet. "Steve!"

I saw him, and ran over to him, trying to move with dust and pieces of the house flying everywhere.

I grabbed him by the shoulder and he turned to look at me, "Scarlett?" he asked in confusion at seeing the suit.

"We gotta get out of here!" I said.

Steve grabbed the hand of the suit and the two of us made our way into the living room.

"Dad?!" I called out as I entered.

"Scar!" I heard him as something else hit the house and we all started to fall.

"Dad!" I yelled as part of the house tipped forward, I watched him tumble towards the window. He grabbed a hold of the beam and managed to stay there. I didn't realize that I was also slipping into the giant gaping hole in the house until Steve grabbed my hand.

"Get her out of here spangles!" my dad yelled.

"DAD!" I called as Steve pulled me up and kept shoving me towards the door.

* * *

We made it to what used to be our driveway and the suit started to dismantle.

"Mom?" I called seeing Pepper and the other woman standing there.

"Scarlett!" she cried out as she launched herself at me.

"What's going on?" I asked as a helicopter crashed into the living room.

I broke free and started to run towards the house. "Scarlett!" my mom cried as I felt Steve's arms wrap around me. "No!" I cried as Steve turned me around and I pressed my face into his shirt.

I thought that maybe not watching would help, but that just caused me to focus on the sounds. The sounds of the beams and windows cracking. My mom's gasps as we waited for my dad to pull out another miraculous feat.

I sniffed and Steve wrapped his arms tighter around me.

I peeked my head out and made eye contact with Pepper and I could tell by her expression that it wasn't looking good.

I pulled back and stared at my house. Most of it was gone, I walked through and made my way to the edge where everything was falling into the water. I gasped as the words got stuck in my throat.

Mom grabbed my hand as she looked out of the where our home used to be, "TONY!" she called out for my dad.

I heard the crunch of glass behind me, so I turned and gave a small smile to Steve.

"It's not safe in here," he said, to confirm his point a slab of ceiling fell behind him.

He held out his hand and I took it as he led me out back to the driveway. Pepper not far behind us.

"I'm sorry," the other woman said as Pepper and I stood there in our grief.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I'm Maya Hensen," she said as she extended her hand.

"That's great, why are you here?" I asked.

"I think my boss works for the Mandarin," she said.

I squeezed my eyes shut and turned away from the group, Steve walked up behind me.

* * *

"What are you thinking?" Steve asked.

I slipped my ring off of my finger and looked inside, I could breathe easier and my shoulders lifted. "He's still alive," I whispered to Steve showing him the steady, if a little elevated heart rate.

"Why didn't he come over here?" he asked.

I shook my head. "To protect us, to figure this out, but who knows?" I offer, not being able to express what I was feeling. My dad as it was turning out, was impossible to kill. My home was gone but he was still safe and I was okay with that.

"Should we tell Pepper?" Steve asked.

I turned my head and saw Mom standing there with one of my dad's Iron Man helmets. "She'll figure it out," I said. "Dad will send a message."

"What do we do?" he asked.

"We go find this bastard," I said as I walked over to Pepper.

"Mom," I said as I wrapped an arm around her waist.

She didn't reply, but she tilted her hand to show me the inside of the helmet, where one new message was waiting. I slipped my ring off and showed her his heartbeat.

"You should go back to D.C.," she told me.

I took a step back, "What?" I asked.

"You and Steve should go back to D.C. and do what you can from there," Pepper said.

"I'm not leaving you," I stated, planting my feet.

"I'll be fine," she said. "Maya and I can do some more research into her boss, and you guys can start to find him."

I took a breath and looked at Steve who seemed ready to do just that. "Mom," I whispered looking back at her. "Dad may be okay but that doesn't mean that the Mandarin won't come after you."

My mom took a step forward and grabbed my hands and squeezed. "We are going to show him what happens when you mess with our family."

I looked up at her and nodded, "Okay." I said before I threw my arms around her neck. I buried my face in her hair and took a breath. I was still jittery and for a moment I just needed my mom.

Pepper looked up and at Steve. "Watch her back," she scolded.

"Yes ma'am," he replied.

We broke apart and I walked over to Steve. "Ready to go back to D.C.?" I asked.

Steve took my hand and squeezed, "Yeah."

Steve opened the passenger door for me as I slipped inside. The adrenaline was starting to wear off and I could feel myself starting to slip into shock.

I jumped a little when Steve put his hand over mine. "We are going to get this guy," Steve promised.

I sighed as stared out of the window, glancing in the side mirror as we drove away from my ruined home. "Sometimes it feels as if this is all our fault," I said not meeting Steve's eye, but relishing the heat of his hand on mine.

"No it's not," Steve quickly shot down.

"You should have seen us, Steve," I said finally glancing at him. "We were gods, myself included. We did what we want, when we wanted; we didn't keep track of the details and thousands died because of it. So my dad set out to stop them, creating Iron Man and since then problems have just been getting worse and worse."

"I may not have known you then, but I know you now and for the past six months, all I've seen is you bare the weight this responsibility has on you and I know that you take this seriously, this isn't your fault." He stated.

Tears prickled my eye as I blinked quickly to keep them from falling. "Thanks," I whispered with a small smile, "and not just for this but for being one of my closest friends."

Steve squeezed my hand and we drove to the airstrip in silence.

* * *

Once Corey arrived the two of us settled into seats to head back to D.C.

Steve was quiet and kept looking over at me; I could tell he wanted to say something.

"What?" I snapped as I watched the takeoff through the tiny window.

Steve took a breath, "Are you okay?" he asked. "I know what you said in the car, but you're shaking and I'm worried."

I had my feet propped up on the chair and was resting my chin on my knees. I finally turned to face Steve. "No," I answered honestly, "not really, I know I should be fine, my parents are safe and we are unharmed."

"But your childhood home was just attacked," Steve countered. "A place where you are supposed to be safe. An attack like that should have shaken you."

"I think I'm getting use to it," I said with a self deprecating smile, "the constant attacks and the threats. I'm not as shaken as I would have been a couple years ago."

The fasten seat belt light clicked off and I unbuckled mine and stood up. "Well I'm done with this conversation," I said as I walked up to the cock pit, ignoring the hurt look Steve was sporting, and how awful it made me feel.

* * *

"Hey Corey," I said as I slipped into the co-pilot seat.

"Scarlett," he said with a smile. "It's been a while."

I nodded as I stared out of the window. "I'm running," I said.

Corey glanced at me but, remained silent.

"From what?" he asked after a moment.

I sighed, "From being hurt," I confessed. "I think I might have feelings for this guy and it terrifies me."

"Ah, Scar," Corey said. "You're too hard on yourself, you're a great girl."

I shot him a small smile. "I know, I'm a catch, wealthy, not bad to look at. But underneath it Corey, I'm a mess and this guy deserves something more. Like I look at him and think he deserves the world, and I can't give him that."

Corey chuckled. "My Lori said almost the exact same thing when I asked her to marry me," he reminisced.

"She did?" I asked perking up at his story.

"She did," he answered. "Her mother had cancer and she was taking care of her."

"What did you say?" I pestered.

"I said her mess was what I loved about her and I wanted the world with her," he replied a small smile appearing on his face. "And it was true, the shiny parts were just frosting to the cake that was her edges."

"That's incredibly romantic," I teased.

"Point is, its' not up to you to decide what someone else deserves," he said. "It's up to you to make sure that person is aware and go from there."

"That was some amazing advice," I said.

"And you are an amazing woman," Corey said. "I've seen you grow and I refuse to believe that you are what everyone is saying. You might have some problems but you'll always rise."

"I love ya, Corey," I said.

Corey chuckled, "I love you too, now go lay out your mess for that guy."

I shot him a side glance at how he figured it out but I just went back and settled into a seat next to Steve.

* * *

"I'm sorry," I whispered, "I'm an awful person who snapped at someone who is just being there for me."

Steve wrapped his arm around me. "I forgive you," he said.

We sat there in silence for a while until Steve spoke. "What's the plan?"

"We gotta find him," I said. "I don't know how, get creative. I just wish I knew what his plan was. He seems to hate everything the United States is but to what end?"

"Replace it?" Steve offered. "Put what he thinks works in its place"

"Maybe, but then why target superficial places, why not go for government buildings or officials?" I countered.

The rest of the flight was spent throwing ideas back and forth and when we finally landed in DC.

"You coming over so we can start?" I asked with a small smile on.

"Yeah," Steve said with a matching smile, "let's get started together."


	5. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone! I'm back, first off a huge apology for taking so long to get this chapter out. Has anyone just had one of those weeks where nothing goes for you? Well I have had that kind of month. This chapter was a bitch to write and it went through three different rewrites and then I ended up losing half of it and had to find it again. Then personally, my grandfather died and school has it hit me full blast, finally I ended up throwing up at work last week and this month has just sucked.**

 **Overall, here is this chapter and I hope everyone enjoyed!**

 **Read, Review, and Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

* * *

I blushed a little as Steve held the door open for me. This was all new to me. Growing up I always had someone there to grab my bags for me or hold the door, but that was their job. This, this was Steve just being Steve. Doing something nice without expecting anything in return, I had been his friend for close to a year now and I still couldn't get over it.

"Do you want some food before we start?" Steve asked.

"I could eat," I offered as I took my usual spot on the counter.

Steve opened his cabinets and I just managed to see a few things before he shut the door quickly and turned towards the fridge. "Um," he hummed as he looked over the contents and shut the door again. "How do you feel about take out?"

I smiled as I hopped off. "Are you giving up, Rogers?" I asked bumping himout of the way, I opened the cabinets and grinned when I saw a box of noodles. "I think we can make this work."

I opened the fridge and grinned when I said half a gallon of milk, some cheese and butter. "How do you feel about mac n cheese?" I asked.

Steve laughed. "I love it," he responded.

I smiled as I started to boil water and got another pan out to make sauce. "I got this if you wanted to get cleaned up," I offered.

There was a pause before I turned and looked at Steve. "I don't mean that you stink. I just thought that you might want to wash off the flight, cause you had two flights back to back and I know that I always feel road trippy and gross. Not that you're gross! I just thought."

Steve walked over to me during my rant and placed both of his hands on top of my shoulders. "Scarlett," he said softly.

I stopped talking and looked up into his blue eyes, a small amount of humor was reflected in them and my shoulders started to relax.

"You cook dinner and I will go hop in the shower," he stated.

I nodded my head, not really focusing on the words because at this height I had a great view of the angle of Steve's jaw and the way his lips formed the word shower. "Ok," I whispered.

Steve took a step back glanced back at me before turning and heading to his bathroom.

I leaned against the counter and closed my eyes; taking a deep breath I covered my face with my hands. _Stupid, stupid,_ I scolded myself before I straightened up and turned back to the stove.

* * *

The water from the shower turned off as soon as I finished making the sauce. I ignored the thought that Steve was naked and wet a few doors down from where I was. I pulled out two bowls and scooped a little for me and saved the rest for Steve. He always pretended that he never wanted more food than I did. But I mean, come on, super solider. Of course he is going to need more food than anyone else.

Steve came in, a few drops of water still clinging to his hair. I bit my bottom lip as I handed him his bowl. "There is more and I'm not going to finish it," I said as I grabbed my bowl and we sat down at the table.

I took a bite and started to chew when I noticed Steve looking at me. "Do I have some cheese on my face?" I asked worriedly rubbing my chin for some food.

"No!" Steve exclaimed, "no, sorry, I was just thinking about asking you a question."

I slowly pulled my hand from my chin, heat coming from my cheeks. "Oh, well ask away," I replied.

"It's ah, not exactly, its kind of personal," Steve stumbled.

I laughed, "Steve, we have been through a lot you and I, I think we have reached the level of asking personal questions."

"Rehab?" Steve asked.

I took a breath and blew it out slowly, letting my cheeks puff out as I did. "It's not like the papers said, it wasn't rehab and no one forced me to go. After New York and Loki," I pause, staring. I turned my head to the side as I tried to control the memories that were flooding my brain. "I had started drinking before that and after it was the only thing I could do to function anymore. So after one very awful night I went and threw myself into isolation and focused on getting better. I'm not there, not even close, but I don't have to drown myself in a bottle before I get up in the morning."

Steve nodded his head, opened his mouth and then closed it again.

"Steve?" I asked.

"It's just that we have spent so much time together since New York and I didn't think it was that bad," he said.

I shot him a small smile. "When your father is as good at hiding how drunk he is, you tend to pick up on a few things. Plus, I tried hard not to drink when I knew I was going to see you."

"Why?" Steve asked genuinely interested, he shifted forward in his chair.

I took a bite thinking over what I was going to say to him with each chew, when movement in the corner of my eye drew my attention.

It was Loki, sitting next to me, smiling. "He's going to think that you're crazy," he whispered. "He isn't going to understand, not like I would. He-"

"Scarlett?" Steve called concerned, my head snapped towards him and I knew I was caught; that he had noticed the emotions play out on my face.

"I see him," I whisper, sitting my fork down as I rubbed my face with my hands. "Loki, sometimes, I think it's just a form of PTSD, a hallucination, but what if it isn't?" I speak, letting someone in to what I was feeling. "What if its real, and he's still here. What if he is coming back?"

"Have you ever thought about talking to someone?" Steve asked. "S.H.I.E.L.D. made me go to a few sessions when I got out of the ice."

"Who could I talk to?" I countered. "Who would sit there and listen to my fears of a Norse god coming back from Asgard to retake the earth again?"

Steve remained silent. I looked up at him through my self-loathing and couldn't read his expression. "Yep," I breathe out. "I'm as crazy as they come."

"You aren't crazy," Steve said.

I raised an eyebrow at him but he stared right back, and somehow I believed him.

"We are all haunted by our pasts, yours just take an actual form," he said.

I opened my mouth to respond but then closed it; there really wasn't anything to say to that, especially with how little I've slept in the past couple of days.

Our conversation turned to chitchat as we ate dinner. Once we were finished, Steve picked up the dishes and I jumped on the counter while he washed them.

"How big do you think this group is?" I asked thinking about the Mandarin. "And is there only one?"

"Maybe worrying about the group isn't the way," Steve offered.

I turned to look at him. "What do you mean?"

"Well, we are spending so much time thinking about the group, but in the end how much good is that going to do to stop them? When I was fighting Hydra we just started looking for their bases, not worrying about the other details," he said. Nodding my head while he spoke, I couldn't help but think that he made sense, and I mean when it all comes down to it Steve has had the tactical experience I was lacking.

"Good point," I said hopping off of the counter as I started to grab the things we were going to need.

* * *

I sighed as I pushed away from the table. I had kind of taken over Steve's apartment. I thought that this was going to be easy but it turns out that this guy knew what he was doing.

"We need a break," I said looking over at Steve who was staring at the computer screen next to me.

Steve sighed and leaned back, he rubbed his eyes. "I agree," he said.

I shot him a small smile as guilt coursed through me. We hadn't slept since we got back from California, heading straight here and working through the night, and poor Steve had been on another flight before that. "Go get some sleep," I said as I stood up to get my stuff. "I'll be back in a few hours."

"You could stay," Steve offered.

I froze, not sure I was hearing him correctly. "What?" I asked.

"You could just stay here," he said a little quieter.

My heart just about burst at that; knowing I was blowing this simple request out of proportion. My desire to finally have a stable relationship and not a deranged god coming to rule the earth who also wanted me to rule by him was huge. This was just a practical outlook, what was the point in going home only to come back to his place once I had woken up.

"I need to change," I said presenting myself with my hand. "Plus, I need to grab a few things."

"O-oh," Steve said. "Yeah, that makes sense."

"Thank you for offering," I said sincerely hoping how much that meant to me was transferred.

"It wasn't a problem," he said.

I smiled again and grabbed my stuff. "I'll be back," I promise.

"I'll see you then," he said.

I nodded my head and saw myself out.

* * *

I sighed as I started to trek down the steps. The sun had set and it was the middle of the night, the streets starting to thin out from the friends and couples who had spent the night with each other. It was a quick walk to my building and with a small nod; I managed to get into an elevator by myself to reach my apartment. Reaching my door I fumbled with my keys before managing to actually make it into my apartment. I sighed and leaned my head against the back of the door; I wiped my eyes with the heel of my hand and pushed myself back off the door. I dropped my bags and stumbled into the bathroom to take a quick shower. I slipped into bed and was down for the count before my head hit the pillow.

* * *

 _Sighing I stretched as I felt myself waking up naturally. This was good; I hadn't slept through the night in a while. Something seemed wrong and the back of my neck started to prickle. I opened my eyes and shot up, my bed spread wasn't green._

 _"Good morning" I heard his voice call from behind me._

 _I took a shaky breath before turning to face him. "Wh-what's going on?" I stuttered._

 _Loki was at the entryway of another room looking in at me._

 _I shook my head, "no" I said as I threw the sheet off of me. "This isn't real." Loki's grin just widen as I headed towards one of the other doors. I threw it open and almost ran straight into Loki. "No" I growled as I turned on my heel and made my way to the third and final door. I opened it and couldn't hold back the sob that escaped my throat as I found another copy of Loki standing there. My chest started to heave as I felt a panic attack start to set in. I was surrounded on three sides by him and each one of them started to take a closer step towards me as I backed away. "I can't do this," I whispered as I found the out I looking for. I bolted for the balcony and just reached the fresh air when I felt a cold hand grab my elbow and yank me back till I hit his chest._

 _"Where are you going?" he whispered in my ear. "You're mine and you can't leave until I say so." With one of the copies still holding me in place another one-stepped in front of me. "Shh" he soothed as he tucked my hair behind my ears. My lower lip started to tremble as tears welled in my eyes. The Loki in front of my grasped my chin as he leaned down to place a kiss on my lips. I started to feel sick when I realized that I wanted him to. Despite everything that he did in New York despite that I never wanted to see him again, I was still attracted to him. Still found myself wanting the person in front of me to be the person I thought he was that night years ago in the bar._

 _Inching forward Loki stopped centimeters in front of my lips. "You are always going to be mine," he promised once more before jerking back._

* * *

I shot up gasping, taking huge breaths trying to calm myself back down as I pushed the sweat drenched hair off of my forehead. I threw the sheets off as I stumbled to my bathroom, barely making it to the toilet before I empty the mac n cheese that was in my stomach. Finishing, I blew my nose and grabbed my toothbrush.

Glancing at the clock I knew that I wasn't going back to sleep anytime soon. I had managed three hours and that was going to have to be good enough for today.

I pulled my hair into a messy bun and threw on some work out clothes as I headed out to run.

* * *

It was well before the sun was due to rise as I fell hypnotized to the steady thumps that my shoes played as I went around and around the national mall. I was trying to put everything into running, ignoring everything else but despite my best efforts I couldn't help but think about that dream. I could not help start to beat myself up over something else that I messed up. I stopped in my tracks, I was messing this up at every turn, this was suppose to get easier. Being Iron Man's daughter being Scarlett Stark. I wasn't supposed to still find myself attracted to the very man my family defeated.

My fingers twitched as I ached to pour myself a tall glass of bourbon. I sighed and started to finish the lap that I was on.

As I came back to my starting point I saw someone starting to stretch. I stood at a respectful distance as I started to stretch for my cool down.

"Morning" he called. I gave him a brief smile and a nod as I caught my breath.

"Morning" I breathed out.

"You training for something?" he asked, "not may people are here before the sun."

"No" I answered shaking my head, "had to clear my head, running seems to help"

"Ah" he said as he stood fully up, "well that I understand."

He stuck his hand out, "Sam" he informed.

"Scarlett" I responded as I met his outstretched hand with my own.

My phone started to ring, breaking up this conversation. "Sorry" I said holding up my phone.

"Not a problem" he chuckled, "hope you escape what you're running from"

I nodded to him and answered the phone.

* * *

"Oh thank god" I exclaimed, "Where are you"

"In Podunk Tennessee" my dad answered. "Are you ok, where are you?"

"I'm fine, I'm in DC" I began, "dad wh-"

"Ok good, then Pep did what I told her"

"Dad, you can't just send me away when you feel like it"

"Scarlett I need you to listen to me, I need you to do some research"

I paused taking a moment to collect myself, "what do you need?" I asked

"I think that these bombs aren't bombs, I think they're people" he replied.

"People?"

"Specifically veterans so I need to figure out how they are getting these volunteers." He continued ignoring my question.

"Wait, dad" I interrupted "will you please explain what is going on."

"Scarlett" he snapped, "I was literally just attacked by a dragon lady and I need you to just do this for me."

I swallowed my retort and wet my lip with my bottom lip. "How do I get ahold of you when I find something?""Just call this number and I'll have my guy take care of It.," he said, "and then that's it, you're done with this. Don't get yourself anymore involved."

"Your guy?" I asked, "and how do you expect me to just drop this, this guy is blowing up building, he blew up our house!"

"Please" my dad, said so softly I almost didn't hear him, "do this"

"Check in" I responded as equally as soft, "I can't do this silence from you"

"Done" he promised, "Daughter, I love you"

I laughed, "Done" I promised, "love you too"

The conversation ended and I squeezed my eyes shut. _Focus, shut everything else out, dad needs you_ I chanted in my head as I headed back to my apartment to change and head out to figure this problem out.

* * *

 **AN: Ok I had a review and I felt the need to respond to it, however it was a guest review so I couldn't do it directly. I want to start out first by saying thank you for reading this and wanting to leave your thoughts on my story, I appreciate the time you took to do it.**

 **On the actually review, you are correct, Scarlett doesn't have any actual responsibility in the company, her focus has alway been the arc reactor. However, this is a first person narrative and these are her thoughts. Scarlett is one of the types of people who puts the blame on herself. I don't think that she is responsible but for the story and to keep to the character that I wrote, she would absolutely feel this blame.**

 **Second, I tried to clarify it in this chapter but just in case, she never rent to rehab. She went to stay with the Bartons at the farm while she worked through some of her problems. The media attention that would come with being who she is would absolutely blow this up in the media. Lastly this was her choice, nobody forced her and Tony hasn't made this choice that Scarlett did.**

 **Hope that hits all of the topics and I wish everyone would leave their opinions in the little box below.!**


	6. Chapter 5

**AN: I know, I know, I'm the worst. I can't apologize more than I already had. But you guys know that I'm just the absolute worst.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

* * *

I smoothed the nonexistent wrinkles from my long sleeve shirt as I walked into the D.C. VA. After talking with Steve we both agreed that this would be the most likely place for someone to scout for veterans. Steve also mentioned that having him come along probably would not be that helpful when trying to get information out of him. I disagreed but that was probably because I was not ready to try and do this by myself.

"Hi," the nice girl at the desk said greeting me.

I returned the smile and walked over to her. "Hi," I responded not sure how I was going to ask my next question. "I'm doing some research and I was wondering if you guys kept a log of visitors?"

Her smile wavered a bit.

"I don't mean of the veterans," I hastily added. "More like any third party groups that work with you guys?"

"Hey," a male voice called down the hall. The secretary grateful for someone else perked up.

"Hey Sam," she said. "This woman has a question for you."

I scrunched my nose. "This woman's name is Scarlett, but yes, if you can answer them, I have a question for you."

"Well, Scarlett I can certainly try," the man the secretary called Sam said as he extended his arm.

I turned to fully see him when I stopped.

"Twice in one day?" Sam asked with a slight smile "how's the running going?"

"Ask me that tomorrow" I teased "shall we?"

He motioned me to follow him and we walked into an empty room. I couldn't deny the spark of hope I was feeling that I at least had someone who wasn't a complete stranger to talk to, that had to be a sign right? "So what can I do for you?" Sam asked.

I sighed. "This is going to sound crazy but I'm wondering if you have been approached by anyone looking for vets," I tried to explain.

"Looking for vets at the VA?" he questioned back with humor in his tone.

"I know, I know but specifically disabled vets?" I asked.

"A few," he responded slowly, "can I ask you why you are?"

"I'm investigating a-" I pause, lick my bottom lip, "company, that is trying to sell a drug that restores limbs, but it's causing deadly repercussions because it's not been FDA approved."

Sam looked at me, judging from the looks of it, to see how true my statement is. I could understand that, someone comes along selling a mystical drug to help people and then someone else says no, it's bad. "I know this sucks, but people are dying."

"I know who you are talking about," Sam sighed. "Been hanging around the building, wouldn't let him in here to talk to people, something sketchy about him."

"Anything you can tell me?" I asked hopeful that this was the breakthrough that I needed.

"I've got his card," Sam said while he dug through his desk. "Here it is," he exclaimed as he walked back over to me and handed me the card.

"Thank you," I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Just doing what I can," he said.

I reached into my purse and pulled out one of the few personal cards I kept in my bag. "I owe you one," I promised.

"I'll hold you to it" he promised back. "See you running sometime."

"Maybe" I said.

* * *

I walked back into the lobby gave a nod to the woman behind the desk while I slipped my phone from my purse, the number that I was suppose to call dialed when an arm came around my shoulder.

"Scarlett" I head a voice "we need to talk."

I glanced at the hand that was firmly gripping my shoulder, then I slowly turned my head to find the owner of the hand. It was Killian.

Glancing down I say the name printed on the business card before grasping the hand and removing it from my shoulder. "Killian" I said sternly, "What could you possibly need to say to me that requires a hand on me?"

"Oh Scarlett" Killian cooed, "I think you already know"

I sighed as I put my hand in my purse. "Ya, I know" I admit. "I've been through this once or twice."

"Good" he said while I dropped the phone and the card in my purse. "Then I can skip the whole speech and you can just come with me"

I nodded my head as I felt my hands wrap around the handle of what I was looking for.

"So hostage?" I asked as I noticed a car pull up to the side for us to get into.

"No, no, " Killian said "a trophy"

I pulled my Taser out of my purse and stepped out of his grasp before aiming for him and striking him. I am going to have to Clint about how thankful I am that he gave me this Taser and secondly I'm going to need him to give me some more lessons on aiming because what I aimed for was Killian's chest what I actually got what his balls.

"Ahhh" he screamed as I dropped the Taser from his crotch and took off running.

I glanced around searching for an escape before the bad guys caught up to me.

"Fuck this" I growled as I pushed a couple out of the way and jumped into the taxi that they were taking. "Sorry" I yelled as I shut the door. "Drive" I yelled at the driver.

The taxi took off and I glanced back to see Killian making his way to the car. "Fuck" I swore as I dug my phone out of my purse. This was not happening again, another bad guy was not capturing me. I had grown up, I could save myself.

"Stark what are you" Nick Fury's voice came from the other end.

"Save it," I snapped interrupting them. "Please tell me there is a safe place in DC that I can get to."

Fury seemed to understand that I was not in a joking mood. I heard a few swipes of the keyboard and then his voice "we have an agent who will meet you in three blocks, have your taxi loop around the building on the left."

I looked up and notice what building Fury was talking about "Loop around that building." I told the driver.

"I can assume that the trouble you are in currently is because of what your father is doing?" he asked.

The driver took the left as we started our circle; I glanced back and noticed that the car was still following us.

"Isn't it always?" I asked, "I'm being followed"

"I know" he said, "the agent's name is Rumlow and he is ready to handle the situation."

I rattled off the location to the driver, "thank you" I said to Fury, glad that despite our differences that he was still willing to help out. "Oh this wasn't for nothing" he said, "I've got something that I need you to look at"

I sighed, "when this is over I will" I promised and hung up. I glanced behind my shoulder and saw that the car was still a few cars away from us, we had about a block and a half to go plus the traffic so I dialed the number my dad told me to call.

"Hello?" a child's voice answered.

"Oh hello" I said, "I'm sorry, I must have the wrong number"

"Are you calling for Mr. Stark?" he asked.

"Uh ya" I said as the taxi pulled to the side, "tell him its Aldrich Killian and then tell him to be careful, Killian's on to us and that he needs to call me" I said quickly before I hung up. I threw a bill at driver before I slipped out and shut the door.

* * *

"You seem furious" a man slid up to me right as the door closed.

"You could say that" I countered, "Rumlow?"

The agent nodded his head and we walked into the building, I glanced over my shoulder but I couldn't see the car. "Is this a bank?" I asked.

"Sure is, the owner is a friend of SHIELD," he explained.

My phone started to ring, I glanced down, "I need to take this," I offered. Rumlow showed me to an office and I answered the phone.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Are you ok?" I heard my father's worried voice almost yell. "

Ya" I answered running my hand through my hair. "Dad it's Killian," I informed him. "He showed up here right after I found out"

"Are you ok?" he asked again.

"I'm fine, managed to slip him, I'm with a SHIELD agent," I said.

"Good, good." He said, "Scarlett, he has Pepper"

I froze as I felt the floor beneath me drop. "Wh-what?" I asked.

"I guess that he wanted both of you and went after you after Pepper" he informed.

"I… I. What do I do?" I whispered.

"Stay safe," he said, "please"

"Nothing?" I choked out, "you want me to do nothing?"

"I need to know that you are ok while I go stomp this guy into a pebble for messing with my family" my dad growled.

"Ok" I whispered, "ok, but I need constant check ups and please at least take uncle Rhodey with you"

"Already here Scar" I heard uncle Rhodey's voice from the phone.

"Keep him safe," I pleaded "please"

"Always" he promised.

I took a deep breath, "ok, I'm going to head back to my apartment, stay on lock down, dad get mom back, kick some ass then call me so I can yell at you for having a kid be your guy" I stated.

"Sounds like a plan" he stated, "I love you Scar"

"Love you too" I responded and the click of the phone told me that he had hung up. My hands started to shake and sat on the corner of the desk, my breath hiccupped as it caught in my throat.

Shakily I pulled Steve's contact up and dialed his number. "How did it go?" he asked without greeting.

"Um" I began, "I got what I needed"

"What happened?" he asked picking up on my tone.

"I can't explain on the phone" I explained "can you come pick me up please?" I asked.

"Where are you?" Steve asked.

I glanced up searched for the address on an envelope on the desk. "It's a bank" I said, "I'm here with a SHIELD agent."

"I'm on my way, stay safe," he promised as he hung up.

I sat the phone on the desk and placed my head in my trembling hands.

"It's my fault," I whispered.

"Oh please" Loki said. I closed my eyes; I couldn't handle this, not now. "You think that since you weren't captured that not being able to find yourmother is your fault? He taunted.

"When you put it that way," I mumbled as I stood up and put my purse over my shoulder ignoring the god on my way out.

The door opened and I jumped, not knowing that anyone was outside. "Agent Rumlow" I said.

"Did you get everything taken care of?" he asked.

I nodded, making sure that I had my phone, "ya, I've got someone coming to pick me up," I said.

"Are you sure they are going to keep you safe?" he asked skeptically, "That car that was following you it looked like they knew what they were doing."

I gave a small laugh, "ya, actually, I know I'm safe with him."

Rumlow nodded and opened the door to let me pass. "Thank you" I said before I fully passed them, "for taking time out of your day to help."

Rumlow shrugged his shoulder "doing my job" he said.

"Well anyway" I said handing him one of my business cards "if you need anything I owe you"

Rumlow took the card and we walked out into the main floor of the bank. I stood on my tiptoes trying to see if I could see the blonde of Steve over everyone.

"Scarlett" I heard him call out.

I turned and couldn't help myself as I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him down as I hugged him.

"Hey" he said as his big arms wrapped around my middle. "Hey"

I closed my eyes as I took in the feeling of being safe that I felt being with Steve, I calmed myself down. "Lets go home," I said taking a step away from Steve.

Steve took his hands from my middle and slid his hand into mine and he led us out of the bank. "What happened?" Steve asked.

"I found out the person who my dad is looking for, pitched Stark industries the idea for whatever the hell is going on," I said

"Seriously?" he asked as I heard the click of my car.

"You brought my mini cooper?" I asked.

"You sounded tense, I figured that it would be easier to take the car and not the motorcycle" he replied.

I smiled at him, "thank you" I whispered as I slipped into the passenger seat. I felt a laugh bubble out of me at seeing him slip into my tiny car. "Well I'm glad I gave you a set of spare keys," I said as we took off back to my apartment.

"well it helps when it rains" he replied.

We settled into silence as I stared out of the window as I collected my thoughts to try and explain what the hell just happened. It was a short drive to the apartment.

* * *

We got out and I stopped short as Steve grabbed my hand. "Do you want me to come up?" he asked.

I entwined my fingers with his, "please" I asked.

Steve nodded to my doorman as we headed into the elevator. "What happened" Steve asked.

"He was outside the VA," I whispered. "Waiting for me"

I jumped as Steve hit the emergency stop in the elevator. "What?" he yelled

My eyes widen at his outburst, "are you ok?" he asked.

I nodded my head, "ya, yes" I said "I uh, Tasered him in the crotch"

Steve froze, "you what?" he asked.

"Tasered him" I said slowly, "and then ran away"

I swore I saw admiration in Steve's eyes at him processing what I had said.

"I should have let him take me though," I said.

"What?" Steve asked,"Scarlett how could you say that?"

"Because he has my mom," I whispered. "And if I would have gone, then my dad could have found us"

"Scarlett, you are one of the smartest woman I know, but that is the stupidest thing I have ever heard." Steve scolded. "How could you think that?"

"Because now, my dad has to go find my mom with nothing." I explained.

"There is no guarantee that you would be taken to where Pepper was" Steve said, "and even still, you could have been hurt, killed"

I slid down on the floor, my eyes closed as I rested my head on the wall, "I know" I whispered. I heard movement and felt a slight pressure on my side as Steve slid down next to me.

"Talk to me" he whispered as he grabbed my hand and squeezed.

"I was so scared" I repeated in the same volume Steve spoke in. "when I saw him, all I could think about was what I was going to have to go through, what he was going to do to me. And I felt this desperation to do anything to avoid that pain again."

"You did that" Steve said, "Scarlett you saved yourself."

I opened my eyes to look at Steve, "but he has my mom, and all I can think about is how scared I was to be taken again. Every time I was taken or threatened because of whom I important to, the fear was almost worse then the pain. All I think about is how much I want my parents there." I swallowed while I felt a few tears escape the corner of my eyes.

"And now Pepper is going through the same thing" Steve said.

I nodded, " and I could have been there, to get her through this. I know its stupid but all I can think of is how scared I am and how scared my mom is and useless I feel because I can't do anything." I finished with a sniff.

"You haven't done nothing" Steve reassured me, "you found the person who is behind all of this."

"I feel so helpless" I confessed, "my family is in danger and I just have to sit and watch." I looked back up at Steve, ready to see the realization in his eyes that I was not worth his time.

Steve reached forward and I felt his hand cup my cheek. I categorized how soft his hand felt on my face. I didn't know what was happening until I felt his lips meet mine. My chest swelled and I had just started to kiss him back when he pulled away. My eyes fluttered opened and I looked at Steve in surprise.

The two of us stared at each other not saying anything. I couldn't figure out what was going through Steve's head so I just leaned forward.

"I'm sorry" Steve said.

I paused, my heart frozen in my throat. "What?" I croaked.

"This wasn't the time," he said.

I exhaled, "maybe not" I said, and then I sent a prayer to whoever was listening as I placed a quick kiss on his lips.

I pulled back and stared at Steve, I met his blue eyes and smiled at him. He returned my smile and I felt myself get pulled back to this moment. From the moment that I saw Killian I had been in my head, worrying and being scared and so desperate to drown my feelings again but, here, in this moment stuck in an elevator with someone who genuinely cares for me grounded me and for the first time in a long time I didn't feel the need to drink.

We stood up and Steve started the elevator again. Nothing was said as we made our way into my apartment but I was overjoyed that he hadn't let go of my hand.

* * *

I threw my keys and bag on the kitchen table, I opened my mouth to talk to Steve about what the hell that was going on between us but our phones started going off.

I dug my phone out of my purse, and let go of Steve's hand. "Oh god" I said reading the news story update that was scrolling on my phone. I turned and rushed to find my remote. "This can't be happening," I mumbled to myself as I clicked the TV on.

The two of us watched the news stream of air force one being torn apart by the Iron Patriot.

"Iron patriot?" Steve asked.

"It's my godfather," I said as I tried; finding his number on my phone, "this doesn't make sense."

"Hello?" I heard a voice call.

"Kid" I said, "Do you know how to get ahold of my dad?"

"Uh" the kid on the other end started to stutter "I'm not suppose to "

"Kid" I growled "now"

After terrifying the child to get a way to contact with my dad, I turned to Steve while the phone was ringing; he had his back to me looking between his phone and the TV.

"Dad" I said "Rhodey"

"It isn't him" he replied, "It's one of Killian's minions."

"Is he ok?" I asked panicked

"He's fine" he informed, "Can you track the suit?"

"Rhodey's suit" I asked turning to find my laptop, "is the logon still the same?"

"It is" Rhodey's voice came from the line, "can you find it?"

I pulled out my laptop and started to type, "is everyone ok?" I asked while I glanced over at Steve who had moved from in front of the TV and was now in front of the window on the phone.

"Nothing permanent" Rhodey replied.

"Uhhh, the suit is in Florida?" I asked as the coordinates popped up on the screen.

"I hate Florida," my dad grumbled.

I chuckled, "ok, I'm going to send you the exact coordinates to your suit, it looks like a barge or something. Have you heard anything about mom?" I begged.

"I'm going to get her back" my dad promised,

"stay safe" "I promise," I whispered closing my eyes trying to fight the feeling of helplessness that was coming back. "Steve's here, keeping an eye on me" My dad growled and uncle Rhodey chuckled. "I love you guys," I said, "please be careful and keep me in touch" They made their promises and hung up. I finished sending everything that I needed to my dad before turning to see what Steve was doing.

"Uh huh" Steve said, "I'll be there Monday"

Steve turned around and slipped his phone in his pocket. "Is everything ok?" I asked.

Steve nodded and he clinched his jaw. "I uh called Fury, accepted his job offer at SHIELD" he said.

"Are you happy about that?" I asked, noting the look on his face.

"I'm not, not happy about it" he admitted, "after working with him with New York I don't know how this is going to go. But after watching that," he motioned to the TV "and not being able to help," Steve trailed off and I nodded, understanding exactly what he was talking about.

"So" I said, running my fingers through my hair, "what do we do from here?"

Steve turned to look at me and I felt a lump in my throat. I didn't know what Steve was going to say, and I found myself desperate for an answer.

"Things are going to be different" Steve said, "with me joining SHIELD"

My heart started to fall and I steeled myself for the disappointment that was about to come. I nodded my head in agreement. "They are," I whispered.

"But" Steve said as he walked closer to me, "I don't want to it to change"

I glanced up at him, questioning his statement. "At all?" I asked.

Steve opened his mouth and then closed it, he squeezed the back of his neck and I took a leap.

"Steve" I whispered as I reached up on my tiptoes, I placed a very light kiss on his lips and fell back down, "I'm interested in where this is going, I understand that this is going to be difficult but I'm willing to go through it."

"Ya" he whispered, his voice hoarse and then he clears his throat "yes I do"

"Really?" I asked excitedly.

A small smile reached Steve's lips, "really" he repeated as he leaned down to kiss me again.

* * *

 **AN: Well there you guys go, a little peace offering to everyone who has waited. I really didn't want Scarlett to get captured again so I took a while to figure out how to still have her involved but not captured again. I hop you like it and I hope you guys leave your review below!**


	7. Chapter 6

**Boom! Look who is back!**

 **I'll have more to say down below, so read there!**

 **I don't own Marvel**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

* * *

I don't know why I was expecting the world to have changed now that Steve and I had decided to try things out but I did. I wanted everything to slide into place and just fit, the fairy tale to finish and for life to be easy.

It was a stupid dream and while everything wasn't fine once Steve and I had decided to work at being together it did make me feel a little more sure of myself. I wasn't crazy or misreading things. I liked Steve and as it turned out Steve liked me back; we liked each together and we were going to try.

"I want to take you out," Steve said from the edge of the kitchen island where I was currently working on an idea for a new gadget on dad's suit. Something to keep my mind busy.

My heart skipped a beat and I smiled, "I want to go out with you too, but now's not really a good time?" I said dejectedly. "I'm kind of on lockdown."

Silence permeated the apartment as we sat there trying to figure out what the next step was. I agreed that this decision should be celebrated but, I was worried about going back out until I got the all clear from my dad. Going back out was a stupid idea, a ridiculous idea, but I wasn't just going out by myself. I was going out with Steve, someone more than capable of handling anything that may or may not happen. Was counting on someone else defending me when I left the apartment, wrong?

"You going to let me know what is going on in that head of yours?" Steve asked.

I shot him a small smile. "Talking myself into going out tonight, while also talking myself out of going."

"Oh yeah?" Steve said moving from his perch. "Which side is winning?"

I liked this Steve, this playful Steve that I rarely got to see. Granted he hadn't really had time to be this person, between recovering from being frozen and then New York. When we were together, hanging out, I got to see this side and I loved it.

I swallowed, just once wouldn't hurt, just depending on someone else wouldn't be the worst thing. Right?

"Ok," I admitted. "I just need to shower and change"

Steve lit up. "Yeah?" he asked.

I laughed. "Yeah," I whispered back.

"Ok, ok," Steve began, "I need to shower and change too, so I'm going to run back to my apartment. I'll use my key to get back in so don't open the door for anyone."

I grinned and nodded. "Will do," I said.

Steve left and I jumped up and down for a few seconds in excitement before I turned and ran to take a shower

* * *

I hurried as fast as I could, I still had a laundry list of items that needed to get done while I was in the shower. The biggest hurdle would be taking care of the knots that formed at the base of my neck. I finished and made my way over to my closet. When I officially moved from the Malibu house the one thing that I missed was that I couldn't bring everything that I wanted to from my closet. So I made the practical decision, I brought my jeans and my normal attire of things that I like to wear; a long sleeve shirt in several colors and a few more business outfits. In short terms, I didn't grab a whole lot of dresses and cute outfits for dates. So, I spent time looking at what I had grabbed and tried to find a somewhat cute outfit for tonight.

I grabbed a long sleeve black shirt and one of my green business dresses. It was strapless and the long sleeves of the shirt will help with the cold. I grabbed a pair of black tights with lining down the back of my legs and a cute pair of black ankle boots.

I blow dried my hair and let it fall naturally as I slipped on a small diamond teardrop necklace. The sun had set and dusk had spread across the sky as I finished getting ready.

I heard a soft knock and the jingle of keys as Steve opens the door. "Scarlett?" he called.

"In here," I yelled from the living room as I stood and tugged my dress down, hoping that what I was wearing looked as good as it did in my head.

Steve turned the corner and I couldn't help but rake my eyes over him. He was wearing a dark red button up with the sleeves buttoned up, he also had a pair of black pants. "You look dashing," I said as I looked at him again.

Steve cleared his throat. "You look, you look beautiful."

I felt my cheeks run hot as I bit my bottom lip. "Thank you," I said as I picked up my small clutch that was on the table.

"Ready to go?" I asked as I went up on my tip toes and fell back down.

Steve held out his arm. "Let's go."

I grabbed his arm and we headed out.

* * *

Steve nodded to the doorman as he held the door for us. I let my mind wander as I followed Steve. Were my parents ok? Was Uncle Rhodey? Was it shitty of me to go out on a date while they are putting their lives on the line for us?

As if on cue my phone started to ring. "Hold on," I said as I stepped to the side of the sidewalk and pulled out my phone. "It's my dad," I said meeting Steve's eyes.

"Answer it," Steve urged.

I swipe to answer his call. "Is she safe?" I asked without a greeting.

"I'm fine," I heard my mom's voice from the other end. "I'm a little bruised but I'm fine."

"Mom?" my voice wavered as I looked up at Steve. "Is that you?"

Steve's arm wrapped around my waist as I leaned into him. "It's me," she confirmed.

I closed my eyes and let the relief rush over me. "Are Dad and Rhodey ok, too?" I asked.

"Everyone's is fine kid," I heard my dad's voice say. "We are going to New York and once we get Pepper settled, we are having a meeting."

"I'll be there, and you're sure everyone is ok? I asked I could feel Steve start to rub circles on my back.

"Well your mom has superpowers but I think that we are getting rid of those soon," my dad piped in. "Have a nice night!" The phone disconnected.

"Superpowers, what?" I asked. "Dad," I pulled the phone back and saw that the call had been disconnected.

"Is everything ok?" Steve asked.

"I think so," I answered glancing at my phone before slipping it in my purse.

"Are _you_ ok?" Steve asked. "We can go home."

"No," I said smiling up at him. "Let's go out."

"Yeah?" he asked, a small smile forming on his face.

I rose on my tip toes and placed a small kiss on his lips. "Yeah," I replied.

* * *

Steve grabbed my hand and we headed to what he had planned for tonight.

Steve opened the door for me and I headed into the restaurant.

"Hey Paul," Steve called out.

"Steve," a small voice called out from behind the table at the door.

I looked down and smiled at a young boy who was perched on top of the hostess table. "Hello," I said.

The child gave me a wide toothless grin. "I'm Seth," he babbled.

I laughed at what looked to be six-year-old stick his tongue out at Seth. "Seth," he whined.

"Are you Paul?" I asked, the older sibling.

"I am," he announced. "And I'm going to take you to your seat."

"Why thank you," I said as I followed him to our seats.

"Here you are," he said as Steve pulled out my chair. "Why thank you, sir."

"My pleasure," he said as he sat across from me.

Paul placed our menus down and looked at the two of us.

"Is this her?" Paul asked.

"Paul," Steve stuttered as his cheeks started to redden.

"What?" I asked looking at Paul.

"Steve comes in all the time, and he asked if he should bring you here for your date," Paul said.

"He did?" I asked.

Paul nodded. "Mama said to bring her here and she is going to make you fall in love with love with him by showing you her cooking."

I laughed as Steve's cheeks turned a new shade of red.

"Thanks. Paul," he said clearing his throat.

Paul scampered off and I turned to Steve. "He's a great secret keeper," Steve commented. I tried to stifle my laughing as Steve chuckled along.

I picked up my menu. "Since you come here so often, what is good?" I asked scanning the menu.

"Well, I get the grilled chicken sandwich," Steve said.

I closed my menu. "Sounds good."

Paul came back over with Seth toddling behind him. "What can I get you to drink?" he asked.

Seth walked over to me and tugged on my dress. I glanced down at him while Steve ordered his drink. "Hi," I mouthed making a funny face to the toddler. Seth giggled while I looked at Paul. "A water would be great," I ordered.

Paul nodded and took off to fill our drink orders. Seth, however, remained at the table and kept tugging at my dress. I picked the toddler up and sat him on my lap while Steve started making faces at him.

"He's adorable," Steve said.

"Yeah," I said as Seth started to pat on the table.

"Did you ever want a sibling?" Steve asked.

I paused thinking about my life and if I had ever wanted one. "No," I said. "Growing up I never wanted a sibling." Steve paused before asking. "Is there a reason?" he asked.

Steve paused before asking. "Is there a reason?" he asked.

"I wasn't big on sharing growing up," I said slowly as Seth picked up my fork and started to chew on it. "After my mom left, I was a little too clingy," I confessed as Paul came with our two glasses of water.

Paul took Seth from us and the two of them waddled over to the hostess table.

I opened my mouth and then closed it, my instinct was to turn the attention away from my childhood; so, I would ask him the same question show him that I am interested in him. But with Steve, thinking about his past means thinking about another time, another age, another life. Is that too much? I breathed through my nose. "Wh-what about you?" I whispered.

Steve paused. "Growing up I had Bucky, he was my best friend, my brother, and he had a sister, Rebecca, she was like my little sister. So in a way I had siblings." I smiled. "That's great, Peter and I were close, but time and distance kept us from being that close."

Paul came back, sans Seth this time and took our orders. Steve ordered for both of us and the small smile that broke out was giddiness that maybe I had found a good guy.

* * *

Our food came and we talked about nothing important or life changing but it meant something to me. He asked about how my opinions on charcoal or pencil. When my favorite time of the day to paint was. Little things that made up me, and he was interested in them.

Steve paid and we started our walk home, my heart sped up as he grabbed my hand, and I bit my lip as we intertwined hands.

* * *

"I had a really great time," I said, my hair whipped in front of my face and I used my free hand to push it back.

"I did too," Steve had to almost yell over the roar of the wind.

I looked around, and up, trying to figure out where this wind had come from, Steve tugged us into an alley to hide. "Where did this come from?" I yelled. Steve who had pressed me up against the wall to shield me from as best as he could, leaning down so he didn't have to yell. "No idea," he whispered into my ear.

I shivered as his breath hit my skin and looked up at him, his hair sticking up from the wind. I thought of what mine had to look like but as we made eye contact, I couldn't think of anything else but his slightly chapped lips coming closer. Closing my eyes and rising up on my toes I was ready for this kiss.

The wind seemed to have found us and Steve shifted slightly to keep his back to the open street when it happened.

* * *

It felt like something was pulling my arm, I stumble and grabbed Steve, terrified at whatever was going on and I noticed that whatever was pulling me, was grabbing at him too.

I saw him reach out and try to anchor us but it was too late, whatever was happening was too strong. Steve realized it and turned to wrap his arms around me. "Hold on," he whispered.

My feet started to move against my will and I clung to Steve, wrapping my arms around his middle.

We were both sucked away and I closed my eyes against the colors that shot past us.

We landed, well Steve landed, I landed on top of Steve. Opening my eyes, I looked down in alarm at Steve who had just landed on whatever ground we were on and with me on top of him. "Are you ok?" I asked assessing him. Steve nodded and I noticed something just past his head.

* * *

A pair of boots.

A pair of black leather boots to be exact.

A pair of black leather boots which lead to tall legs.

I followed those legs up the person's body to meet their face. I couldn't form words, couldn't even figure out how to breathe. The worst part was, I didn't know if he was real or not.

Steve followed my gaze and sprung into Captain America mode as he shot up and pushed me behind his back.

This was real, this was very real.

Glancing to my left, I saw a woman standing there, next to a throne with a man; no, a king, on it.

Terror washed over me, I almost wished he was just in my head again.

Steve and I were in Asgard, Steve and I were in front of Loki.

Peering around Steve I met Loki's eyes and watched as a smile curled around his face.

"Clara, darling," he purred.

* * *

 **AN: Holy mother of God, does anyone else have the hardest time uploading to fanfiction? I swear to god it takes me an hour to an hour and a half to get a chapter uploaded into doc manager (I use the copy and paste option since I do it on one huge doc) This is the only website that my mac has an issue with and I hate doing it. ok, rant over.**

 **I'm back! and earlier than I imagined, for those in the US, it's about a week before my college's spring break and this is my last semester so I decided to take a whopping 18 hours, one of which is a self paced course (SPOC for those who don't know is a 16 week course down in 8 weeks by yourself because you can't get into one of the scheduled times) Well I'm a dummy and picked the start date so my class ends next week, in the middle of spring break, well I'm going to Vegas for the first time as a graduation gift so there was no way in hell I was going to be doing the class during it, so I've been busting my ass to do it in 7 weeks instead of 8, I'm still not done, but will have it done (probably)**

 **Also, I finally after looking at these books for years (dramatic) I decided to pick up ACOTAR by Sarah J Mass and it's sequel ACOMAF (for those who don't know, it's a court of thorns and roses and a court of mist and fury) They are great and if you haven't read it you should and I'm sad to say that it took me this long but I've just been rereading ACOMAF and chilling in the night court with the crew so if the last line strikes a familiar tone, it should. I've been jamming this court of mist and fury playlist for a month and I'm sure that it is driving my roommate crazy Ok, enough about the books, I don't have a medium where I can talk about the books that I'm reading but I don't think the AN is the place to do it.**

 **We finished IM3! I know, I know, it was with a phone call but I think we can all agree we didn't want her kidnapped again, I personally feel like she has grown from that and I couldn't find a justifiable explanation for her to be there. But, who cares because we have Loki back! and because I love drama, we had to bring Steve, that'll be fun.**

 **Ok, my lovelies, I think that is it for my random ranty AN, if you guys have any thoughts about this chapter, your spring break plans, trouble uploading documents, your love for Sarah J Maas, (NO spoilers! I also have not yet started a throne of glass before anyone asks, i know, i know but the explanation would require a longer form talk and this isn't the place since I'm sure that most of you have stopped reading by now)**

 **anywho, leave anything you want to say in the pretty box below and I will try to respond!**

 **BYE!**


	8. Chapter 7

**AN: I'm baaaack. I know, I know, I'm a piece of garbage for making you wait this long. I moved across the country to Boston from Oklahoma and I don't know anyone out here and it has been an adjustment that I'm still not all the way adjusted too.**

 **Anywhoo**

 **I do not own Marvel,**

 **Read, Review, and Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**

* * *

"Guards!" the man on the throne yelled.

Steve turned to keep both Odin and Loki in his eyesight. His shoulders tensed as armed guards came into the throne room.

"Shit" I mumbled as the sound of several people came into the room. I glanced at Loki again and took in just how chained up he was. Our eyes made contact and his eyebrow rose as if challenging me to say something. The guards all turned and pointed their weapons towards us and I turned my gaze away from him.

Summing courage I slipped out from under Steve's arm and made my way to in front of the throne. Making sure I ignored the weapons trained on me, and the growl that I heard from Loki at having said weapons pointed at me.

The heat of having all of the eyes in the room was burning me as I nodded my head in respect towards what I was praying to well Thor, that she was Frigga. "Queen Frigga" I began, raising my head to look her in the eyes. "I'm-"

* * *

"Scarlett!" I heard a friendly voice boom and relief flooded me. "Steve!"

I turned and gave Thor a huge grin, "Thor!"

Thor shook Steve's hand and the two of them joined me in front of Thor's parents.

Thor enveloped me into a hug. "It's good to see you," he said. "Are you here for Loki's sentencing?"

I opened my mouth to reply but was caught with the stench of him. "Ew" I squealed, "You stink"

Thor chuckled and he broke the hug, "I was busy fighting," he said.

I pushed him lightly on the chest, "I can tell, wait sentencing?"

Thor nodded and motioned his head towards Loki, "my father is delivering his sentence"

I turned towards Loki as Thor turned to his parents. I wanted to say something but I was so aware of how many people were in the room. So instead I sought out Steve's hand. Steve's hand clasped mine and I leaned against his shoulder as I turned back towards Thor.

* * *

"These are my friends from Midgard" Thor said. "They are-"

"They are trespassers" The man who I am guessing is Odin stood up and yelled. "They were not invited here"

I rocked back on my heels, content to let the boys figure out what was going on. I was out of my depth here and I needed to let Thor handle his parents.

* * *

My attention was drawn again however, despite how hard I tried to ignore it, to Loki standing there. He was in the corner with his arms crossed. I glanced at the Loki in chains and then back to the Loki who was glaring at me, an eyebrow raised. "When did you become so passive" he said.

I opened my mouth to retort but I stopped, it was bad enough I talked to this figment when I was alone; I wasn't going to start responding in public.

* * *

"You know the punishment for coming here uninvited" Odin's voice drew my attention back.

Heat ran through me at this statement, "punishment?" I scoffed as I let go Steve's hand. "Does it look like we wanted to be here"?

Thor glanced down at me and I swore I saw a small smile flit through his face.

Odin opened his mouth but I knew if I stopped I wasn't going to start again.

"We were dragged here" I spoke over him, motioning to Steve, "by some unknown force from Earth. Thor clearly knows us so we aren't a threat. All we want to get back to Earth"

"Enough!" Odin yelled "guards!"

Steve grabbed my wrist as two soldiers walked towards us

I glanced at Thor "Father" he said.

Steve held out his hand to the guards, "no need" he said "we understand" as the two of us started to walk out of the throne room.

Apparently our compliance wasn't good enough for the guards as the one closest to me grabbed my upper arm. Chains rattled and I glanced over at my shoulder to meet Loki's eyes for what felt like the millionth time tonight. There was a moment where I swear I saw something like possession in those jade green eyes at my being manhandled.

This wasn't supposed to be this way. We were going on a date, a nice normal date. Not swept away to Asgard to be escorted out by some pretentious king whose head is so far up his.

No

I stopped in my tracks. The only way I was going to get him to listen was to get his attention. I pieced together a very very sketchy plan to find a way to get his attention. Hoping that Thor wasn't just bullshitting us with this.

"Please work," I whispered as I stuck my hand out and wished that I wasn't about to make an utter fool out of myself.

* * *

Power surged ran through me as Mjonir made contact with my outstretched hand. I shook off both Steve and the guard's hands and walked right back up Thor and Odin.

Odin leaned forward in his throne and grabbed his staff.

"Listen here" I growled as I gave Thor back Mjonir. "I have had to deal with Thor being banished to my world, have had to clean up the mess that he and Loki made in New Mexico. I fought against Loki while he invaded my world. I buried friends and family. I watched my world destroyed because of your sons twice." My chest heaving as I took another breath "And now I have been dragged here, I have been disrespected and ushered out of here when the truth is that I have done more parenting to your children than you have. So Steve and I are going to go, Thor is going to show us the way to where we will return to Earth and hopefully never see each other again."

I turned and walked back down the steps, my head held high as I felt something uncurl in me as I made my way back towards Steve. For the first time in almost a year, I felt like the old me.

* * *

Loki took a step to the side, standing right in my path. "Clara" he breathed.

"Loki" I mummed.

Loki reached out towards me and for a moment, just a second I swear. I was going to let him.

Then I remembered, I remembered how long it took to clean up New York, we still weren't even done. I remembered the nightmares the ones I loved and how they couldn't sleep through the night. I remembered Phil.

"I have an eidetic memory." I breathed out looking up at him, "Which means that I remember everything that I read. Which means I will never forget the names of the hundreds who died because of your actions."

Loki didn't reply but he didn't break my gaze either, his hand withdrawing as I side stepped him and made my way towards Steve.

"Lets go home," I said as we headed towards the door.

* * *

Steve and I walked out of the throne room. I led him to around the corner before I leaned against the wall. "Ho-ly crap" placing my hands on my knees.

"You were amazing" Steve said.

I met his eyes and gave a wobbly smile, "you think?" I asked, "I'm still convinced we might actually be killed."

"How did you do the thing with his hammer?" Steve asked.

I took a deep breath as I calmed myself down from the encounter, from talking to Loki. "I had moved it before, didn't really know it was special till New York. Then I closed my eyes and wished"

Steve pulled me upright and enveloped me in a bone-crushing hug.

I wrapped my arms around his middle, and rested my head on his shoulder.

* * *

We heard Thor chuckling and we broke apart to see him. "That was spectacular," he laughed.

"Really?" I asked, "cause I was pretty sure that we were about to die"

"Well, the punishment for trespassing is execution, but since you wielded Mjonir, your lives have been spared." Thor said.

"So lets not push it and head home," Steve said.

I looked up at him, "I couldn't agree more"

* * *

We walked out of the castle in silence, us trailing behind Thor. I couldn't help but take in the how beautiful the castle was. I slipped my phone out and started snapping a few pictures. I had no idea how my phone was working, but I wasn't asking questions. This was breathtaking.

We continued, Thor and Steve catching up while I continued to capture the beauty of Asgard. I was actually feeling the itch in my hand to draw.

"Heimdall" Thor greeted, "how goes it"

My gaze was torn from the golden walls to the golden gatekeeper.

"Very well my prince, it is finally nice to meet you Lady Stark and Captain" Heimdall answered.

"Likewise" I said as Steve nodded.

"We are sending our friends back to Midgard" Thor said.

"DC" Steve added.

"Please" I said to the gatekeeper with a smile.

Heimdall nodded his head. "Of course my prince"

Heimdall picked his sword. "My son" I heard a female call.

The trio of us turned to see Queen Frigga walking towards us.

"Mother" Thor replied.

"I was wondering if I could borrow Clara?" she asked looking towards me.

"Oh" I replied surprised that she wanted to talk to me. "Ya sure, I guess" I shot Steve a quick what the hell look as I walked towards her majesty.

"Go ahead" Frigga said to her son, "I'll have Heimdall send her down when we've finished."

I shot a look towards Steve, "mam, I think your husband made it pretty clear that we needed to leave immediately." He said.

Frigga waved away our concern, "nonsense" she said.

"I'll be fine" I said to Steve, I walked over and gave his hand a squeeze.

"See you soon" he replied with a smile and a quick kiss on the cheek.

Heimdall opened the bifrost and Steve walked through it.

* * *

"Are you and the Captain together?" Thor asked.

My cheeks felt hot as I nodded. "Tonight was our first date," I confirmed.

"Mother, may I formally introduce you to Lady Scarlett" Thor said with a huge sweeping arm movement. "A warrior and my friend"

My lips quirked in a smile. "Thanks for that introduction"

"Scarlett?" Frigga said "not Clara?"

I took a deep breath. "Clara is my first name, but I go by Scarlett. Um your majesty?" I tacked on at the end.

Frigga nodded her head in understanding, "there is no need for formalities, as you put it, you've been parenting my children more than I have."

I closed my eyes in embarrassment, "I didn't mean it that way"

"Come" Frigga said, "I think we have much to discuss"

I nodded my head and dropped my eyes to the ground. This is what I got for yelling at the freaking king and queen of Asgard.

"I will leave you two to your conversation" Thor said, winding his hammer to take him across the rainbow bridge.

"Go take a bath!" I call to him as he took off to the castle.

* * *

With Thor gone, my ability to hide behind at least one person I hadn't offended was gone.

I turned to face Queen Frigga, "mam" I began

Frigga had a kind smile on her face, and I knew that this was the reason Loki held her in such high esteem.

"There is no need to be worried, my dear," she said extending her hand out towards me. I smiled in return and grasped her hand.

Our surroundings changed the moment that I grabbed her hand. I released it the moment that I was sure that I wasn't going to vomit.

"Apologies, traveling like that for someone who hasn't before can be quite difficult." Frigga said.

I put my hand on whatever was next to me, a desk it seemed to be, to stop the dizziness. I looked down and noticed that my hand was on a necklace. My necklace. I picked it up and let the charm dangle in front of me. The crescent moon that had diamonds on it. I lost it back in New Mexico, I thought when the Destroyer came into the town it was destroyed. Apparently someone had nicked it before then.

"My son came back from seeing his brother" Frigga said noticing the necklace, "and he came back with this necklace."

I crumpled the necklace in my hand. "Is this why you wanted to talk to me?" I asked.

"It is" Frigga said.

I bit my lip and turned around to survey this room. It was Loki's bedroom. He hadn't been in here since New Mexico if that necklace was still there. That seemed like a lifetime ago, for both of us.

"This is," I asked

"It is" Frigga said as she reached towards a stack of papers. "you know, I thought for sure I was going to have a daughter in a short time." She handed me the piece of paper she was looking for.

Heat crept up my neck as I took in what was on that piece of paper. Loki had sketched me, in a dress. An Asgardian dress of green and gold. It was clear that oki has meant it as a future design for me to wear.

"Queen Frigga" I said turning to face her, "I" I began and then stopped. What the hell, there wasn't anyone here that I was worried about knowing this. "I'm not going to lie. When we met, I felt a connection that I hadn't felt with someone in a long time. And then he lied to me, and he destroyed a town to kill his brother. Then he healed me when I was dying and tried to take over my world. I can't lie to you and say when I look at him I don't still feel that connection. But the good doesn't out way the bad."

I watched a sad smile settle on Frigga's face. "I see he picked a good one to love"

I was pretty sure my entire face was red at hearing Frigga's words.

"My son will spend the rest of his days locked in the cell." She informed me.

My head snapped up, "what?" I asked.

"That is the punishment my husband has decided"

Relief that at least he wasn't going to die rushed through me. Then anger at this situation. "Then why bring me here?" I asked, "Why show me this" waving the picture to here.

"Because I needed to know if there was someone else besides me who cares for my son." She replied.

I looked down at the picture that made sense I guess, while it sucked on my side, if it was my child…

"I think I'm ready to go home now" I said softly to her.

"Do you want to see him?" she asked.

* * *

 **AN: Does she want to see him? Who is ready for the Scarlett/Loki talk, if she is brave enough to face him that is.**

 **Let me know your thoughts and opinions in the box below!**


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